Brand Communication In An Era of Digital Disruption

Welcome to The Brand Conference

The Brand Conference is the only event in the UK dedicated to brand communication, marketing innovation and digital fan engagement in the sports industry. Through an interactive approach of workshops, round table discussions, case study presentations and panel sessions, attendees will learn how some of the most successful sponsors, clubs, and international rights holders manage their brand engagement.

Workshops

20 minute interactive sessions led by handpicked experts to provide a knowledge-sharing platform and best practice guidance to brand communication.

Roundtables

Following the technical workshops, our chosen experts will host round tables. With a maximum of 10 per table this enables tailored content, in-depth discussion and core-focus learning for attendees.

Case Studies

Content rich sessions led by senior level speakers on the latest trends in brand communication. Featured topics will range from fan engagement to brands in esports, and you can be sure that no stone will be left unturned.

Technology Showcase

The Brand Conference will showcase brand new concepts, models and technologies that are reshaping the sports and digital landscapes.

Brand Presentations

Leading global brands will present focused analysis into their own strategies, successes, challenges, opportunities and ultimately how to get the best returns on ROO/ ROI.

Panel Sessions

These informative and engaging panels will allow attendees to learn key takeaways from sponsors, clubs, and international rights holders who have implemented successful brand initiatives.

Facilitated Networking

Join a structured networking environment with a dynamic and friendly community of people who are looking to extend their global network while having genuine business conversations.

Kate Johnson is Vice President and Head of Global Sponsorship Marketing at Visa, In her role, she oversees the global portfolio of sponsorship for Visa, including the company's 30-year partnership with the IOC, FIFA and the NFL. Sponsorships has been a key pillar of Visa's marketing strategy for many years. Through these properties and platforms, Visa has been able to offer unique value to clients, while building a stronger brand and driving business growth globally. Vias's sponsorship portfolio includes properties from around the world that are procured for a variety of purposes including but not limited to: Brand Building, Client Pass-Through/ General Activation, Client Co-Sponsorships, and Consumer Product Benefits, allowing Visa to tell a story that the business, brand and consumer can connect with in meaningful ways.

After an award winning career agency side working for various clients, including alcohol, telecoms and FMCG, James was recruited to work for Coca-Cola on the integrated marketing communications team. After various marketing roles in the Northwest Europe BU James was moved onto the London 2012 Olympic project team to lead the execution of the Olympic Torch Relay for the company. After delivering Coca-Cola’s most successful torch relay, in 2012, he was posted to Coke Brazil to lead the marketing and sponsorship for the Rio 2016 Games. In Rio he created one of the most talked about and integrated activations for the games. He is continuing his career with Coca-Cola and the Olympics with his recent move to Japan as Vice President of Olympic assets and marketing for the Tokyo 2020 Games.

Sabrina KreienborgHead of Global Sponsorships

Corporate Brand Marketing and Sponsorship Guru who has been involved in profiling and emotionalizing the DHL brand globally since 2008.

Mark WallerExecutive Vice President, International and Events

Mark Waller was named NFL Executive Vice President of International & Events in March of 2017, and is responsible for the NFL’s global growth agenda as well as the League’s portfolio of events, including the Super Bowl, Combine, Draft, Kickoff & Pro Bowl.

A British national, Mark has had an international business career that spans more than 25 years with global companies. He joined the NFL on February 1, 2006 and became Chief Marketing Officer in August of 2009. In that role, he oversaw the league’s marketing, as well as the NFL’s international activities.

He was responsible for developing the NFL’s long-term fan development and brand strategy, and served on the league’s Business Ventures senior management team.

Silvio VigatoHead of Brand and Co-Chief Revenue Officer

Born in Padova on 24 July 1972, he graduated in Business Administration from Bologna University before furthering his studies in Colorado. His first role in Italy was with Ferrari, where he worked on marketing, brand management and market analysis between 1998 and 2000. After a spell at consultancy agency Landor Associates, he returned to work for the Ferrari-Maserati Group in 2002 as Licensing Manager, Head of International Communications and PR and Licensing and Sponsorship.

His CV, which also boasts experience as a tutor at Bologna University, was enriched between 2006 and 2008, when he served as Licensing Manager for Ferrero Group. This was then followed by Head of Marketing and Communications and Strategic Planning positions at Bonfiglioli and Bormioli Rocco Groups. Vigato’s most recent venture saw him co-found and act as Chief Marketing Officer for start-up company Ship&Duck.

From 2015 he joins the club’s management as Head of Brand, Licensing and Retail. In 2016 he also took on the title of Co-Chief Revenue Officer.

Todd KlineChief Commercial Officer

Todd Kline enters his third season with the Miami Dolphins as senior vice president, chief commercial officer. In his role, Kline oversees all sponsorship revenue and activation for the Dolphins. Kline came to the Dolphins after serving as the senior vice president of partnership and media sales for AEG Global Partnerships. Prior to his time with AEG, Kline served as the senior corporate marketing manager for the NFL Players Association and an account director at GroupM ESP. He received his bachelor’s degree in business management from the University of Maryland and a master’s degree in marketing at Johns Hopkins University.

Martin AnayiCEO

Martin Anayi, CEO of PRO14 Rugby, joined the company in October 2015 having previously worked on Rugby World Cup and the FIA World Rallycross Championships during his time with WME-IMG. Most recently, Martin has played a critical role in the expansion of the Guinness PRO14 into South Africa, the increasing in centralised revenues and in delivering a commercial and operational strategy to ensure that that the Championship is at the forefront of innovation. Prior to joining PRO14 Rugby he spent eight years as Vice President and Managing Director of the FIA World Rallycross Championships. Martin began his career within the legal profession, joining IMG in 2008 from city law firm Pennington's. Martin played semi-professional rugby in the back row for various clubs throughout his career including London Irish, Leeds Tykes 2nd team and London Welsh.

Elen BarnesMarketing Director

Since graduating from the University in Bath, Elie has spent the past 12 years working within the Sport Industry. Having spent time working agency side at Fast Track Agency with GlaxoSmithKline (Lucozade Sport) she moved brand side to work at QBE Insurance on their rugby portfolio, before moving to SKY to manage their cycling marketing. Elie joined LVMH Watch and Jewellery Group at the end of 2016, where she now assumes the role of Marketing Director for TAG Heuer. Her responsibilities include overseeing activations for the brand’s global sponsorships of the Premier League, Manchester United, Red Bull Racing, the London Marathon and the Rugby Sevens World Series in the UK. Away from the office, a keen sportswomen having played International hockey for over a decade and competing at two Commonwealth Games (Delhi, 2010 and Glasgow 2014) Elie currently plays National League for Hampstead and Westminster hockey club, she is also on the board of trustees for ‘Women in Sport’.

Alex WildeHead of Sports Marketing EMEA

Alex Wilde leads Sports Marketing for Beats by Dre in EMEA - Europe. Middle East & Africa. He has been with Beats since 2011, the second employee ever in Europe. Alex works closely with the global teams at Beats to ensure meaningful and success campaigns across their broad range of signed ambassadors including Anthony Joshua. He also spends a lot of his time finding the next people in line to join the Beats roster - the stars of tomorrow. Before Beats, Alex has worked on a wide variety of clients at various agencies including Heineken, Mercedes-Benz & Lenovo sponsorship of Beijing Olympics.

Freddie CunninghamCommercial Director

I head up Anthony Joshua’s management company running all of his out of ring activities, overseeing everything from social media to PR and heading up all his commercial partners and sponsorships.

We have a number of companies under the AJ brand and alongside AJ I help oversee these companies. One being 258 Management where we are developing a young stable of talented boxers who we believe have the ingredients to transcend out of the sport and follow in the footsteps of AJ and the blue print we have created.

Day to day role is managing Anthony and his career.

Benjamin MorelSenior Vice President & Managing Director - EMEA

As NBA Senior Vice President & Managing Director in charge of EMEA, Benjamin Morel oversees all aspects of the NBA operations including media distribution, events, merchandising and sponsorship across the region.

Ben originally joined the NBA in March 1998, responsible for the Non-Apparel merchandising business. In 2003, he was named Department Head of Consumer products Group based in the then NBA Europe HQ in Paris. Since January 2008 Ben has been based in the NBA’s London office and has been the regional operational head since June 2011. He was named NBA Senior Vice President & Managing Director - Europe & Africa in March 2012 and Senior Vice President & Managing Director, Europe Middle East and Africa in April 2014.

David MolinaVice President, Consumer Marketing & Sponsorships

With more than 20 years marketing experience, David Molina started his career in the Advertising Agency world, working for international firms. From there he started to become specialized in marketing for financial services organizations, working in different roles at American Express, local Visa card issuers in Spain and international banks. Since joining Mastercard +9 years ago, David Molina has taken different positions. After leading marketing in different European countries and at Regional level, in 2014 he became Head of Sponsorships for Europe. In March this year David became Vice President of Consumer Marketing & Sponsorships: he is now responsible for brand, advertising, media, social and all Mastercard assets and platforms where Sponsorships play a critical role. David has a degree in Advertising & Public Relations and master’s degrees in professional marketing and corporate communications.

David BruceVice President, Brand at Major League Soccer

As Vice President of Brand and Integrated Marketing for Major League Soccer, David Bruce is charged with managing the internal brand function of the top-flight soccer league in the United States and Canada. In this role, Bruce leads all positioning work for the League and its big events, as well as campaign development and marketing execution. He is actively involved in developing new branded platforms and initiatives that enable MLS to continue to grow the scale and reach of its fan base. Bruce led the recent rebranding of the League, which was launched at the beginning of the 2015 season.

Charlie McEwenChief Operating Officer

Charlie McEwen was appointed April 2015 as Chief Operating Officer of the British & Irish Lions following outstanding success as Commercial Director of The Lions and PRO12 Rugby. He is responsible for the day to day growth and management of the business. Charlie joined the Lions in 2010 having been Managing Director and Founding Partner of Accelerate Sports and Music Ltd., a company that was acquired by Chime Sports Marketing. Charlie is working on his fifth Lions tour.

James YoungHead of Partnerships

James Young leads Lucozade Sport’s partnership activity, a role he has held since late 2012. This includes defining the brand’s partnership strategy, campaign creation and managing partnerships with the Premier League, the FA, the Virgin Money London marathon, Tough Mudder, England Rugby as well as brand ambassadors Anthony Joshua, Harry Kane and Emily Skye.

Before this, James worked in a range of sponsorship and marketing roles at British Airways, O2 and Sony Ericsson, where he was involved with projects including Rugby World Cup 2003, the London 2012 bid and The O2 music venue.

ClickOnTechnical Workshop

EventbaxxExhibitor

Esports ObserverMedia Partner

Esports Observor is an esports media and technology startup based in Berlin, Germany. We are on a mission to build the central information hub for the business of esports. We believe that our services will help decision-makers to better understand the esports industry.

Livewire SportTechnology Partner

TellyoTechnology Partner

FonixTechnology Partner

European Sponsorship AssociationMedia Partner

ESA’s mission is to inspire, unite and grow the sponsorship industry for the benefit of its members. ESA will do this through education, guidance, representation, the recognition of excellence and the sharing of best practice and performance.

The UK Sponsorship AwardsMedia Partner

The UK Sponsorship Awards are the preeminent awards for the sponsorship and partnerships sector within the UK and beyond, highly prized and viewed as the ‘Oscars’ of the industry. The Awards are open for entry from September 1.

Charles Russell SpeechlysGold Partner

Charles Russell Speechlys sports practice is a top ranked who have been at the forefront of providing legal advice to the sports sector for over 100 years. We have acted in many of the leading cases that have helped to shape what is now known as ‘sports law’ and are go-to advisers for governing bodies, major clubs, elite athletes, brands and agencies.

UmbelGold Partner

Umbel helps the most admired companies in sports and entertainment understand and engage their fans. The leading first-party data management platform, Umbel empowers you to grow your fan base with engaging data collection campaigns, know your audience with a unified view from any source, and drive revenue with hyper-targeted advertising. Our goal isn’t for you to just collect data--it’s to make data the most valuable asset you own. Founded in 2010, Umbel is headquartered in Austin, Texas. Visit www.umbel.com to learn more or connect with us on Twitter, Facebook or LinkedIn.

UCFBGold Partner

A world first in higher education, UCFB is dedicated to the delivery of ground-breaking educational programmes in the strategic, operational and business facets of the football business and wider sport and events industries.

As such, and as a result of our deeply embedded position in the industry, we have developed an in-depth knowledge of the workings of the sector and the demands placed on football and sports businesses. Consequently, all of our programmes, courses and training have been designed in collaboration with the industry in order to meet the distinctive challenges faced by this unique sector.

With a strong track-record of delivering innovative, inspiring yet practical degree and executive programmes, our vision is to be the outstanding provider of Apprenticeship training and executive development within the football and wider sports industries.

GlobalSportsJobsMedia Partner

GlobalSportsJobs.com is the leading specialist digital talent platform for the international sports industry. It provides an innovative, technology-driven solution to help sports organisations source a greater quality and diversity of talent, and is helping further professionalise and educate the industry by publishing original and engaging market insights.

Press AssociationMedia Partner

The Press Association is the UK's leading multimedia news agency and digital content supplier.

As well as being the home of the UK’s national newswire - which supplies news to national and regional newspapers, magazines and broadcasters - the Press Association has evolved as a provider of tailored multimedia content solutions for a broad range of businesses, brands and public sector organisations. PA’s products and services span everything from sports data APIs, hosted live blogs, and social media content to media training, page production services and TV listings.

SportoMedia Partner

The SPORTO platform is contributing to the industry with their know-how, education and networking, with the biggest focus on the SEE region. SPORTO Conference is one of the Europe’s leading events for marketing and sponsorship in sports and has been bringing together key players from the industry since 2004. Biannual SPORTO Magazine is an essential reading for a better understanding of the possibilities of how to harness the power of sports. Connecting sports properties, brands, agencies and the media is additionally done through SPORTO Brands & SPORTO Awards (in cooperation with European Sponsorship Association).

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2017 Venue

This year, the Brand Conference headed back to the 'home of cricket', Lord's Cricket Ground.

Lord's Cricket Ground, generally known as Lord's, is a cricket venue in St John's Wood, London. Named after its founder, Thomas Lord, it is owned by Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) and is the home of Middlesex County Cricket Club, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), the European Cricket Council (ECC) and, until August 2005, the International Cricket Council (ICC). Lord's is widely referred to as the "Home of Cricket" and is home to the world's oldest sporting museum.

Lord’s is very close to the centre of London – just 1.5 miles from Marble Arch – and easy to reach by road, tube and bus. St John’s Wood is the closest tube station (approximately 5 minutes’ walk), and Baker Street, Warwick Avenue, Marylebone and Edgware Road are all within 15 minutes’ walk.

Train

The nearest main line railway station is Marylebone, approximately ten minutes’ walk from the Ground. Marylebone Station is on the Chiltern line.

Paddington Station is approximately twenty minutes’ walk from the Ground, for services to West and South-West England and South Wales.

Euston and King’s Cross stations are only a short journey away.

By Bus

Buses

Lord’s is well-served by buses.

The 13, 82 and 113 routes run adjacent to Lord's on the Wellington Road (to the east of the Ground). These stop closest to the North and East Gates, but are within a comfortable walking distance to the Grace Gate.

The 139 and 189 routes run adjacent to Lord's on Grove End Road (to the west of the Ground). These routes stop closest to the Grace Gate, but are a short walk from the East and North Gates.

By Road

Road

The Ground is 6 miles from the M1 and 1.5 miles from Marble Arch. It is also close to the M40 and M4.

M40 – from the end of the M40 take the A40 (Westway). Turn left into Lisson Grove. at the end of Lisson Grove, turn right into St. John’s Wood road. Lord’s is on the left.

M1 – from the end of the M1 take the Hendon Way, past Brent Cross Shopping Centre and over the north Circular Road (A406). Turn right on to Finchley Road (A41) and continue to Wellington Road. Pass St. John’s Wood underground station on the left and the Wellington Hospital on the right. Lord’s is on the right.

Due to space restrictions, there is no parking on-site at Lord's on major matchdays or the three days beforehand. However, Westminster Council offer parking close to Lord's at Kingsmill Terrace (NW8 6AA). Please visit their websites via the links below:

Cycle Hire

There are several docking stations within five minutes’ walk of the Ground, on Abbey Road, St John’s Wood Road, Wellington Road, Lodge Road, Lisson Grove and Prince Albert Road.

Taxi

A Black Cab taxi ride from Paddington station costs approximately £10, while there are mini cab services also available if booked in advance.

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